THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 14 : In Waterstones Cafe

 NEITHER WOLF NOR DOG

our artist..

is sitting in Waterstones Cafe in Nottingham..

it's a cool place..

great coffee and staff..

great big windows with a view..

he is reading a book he has found in the store..

it is a good book and he has purchased it..

by a guy name of Nerburn..

INDIANS I NATIVES I AMERICANS I ORIGINAL I PEOPLE

his mind is taken back to some paintings he made back in 2008..

he had this huge roll of heavy weight rag paper..

which was pure white..

and empty..

he cut it up into rectangles..

and put the in the bath..

to soak and get rid of the rolled ness..

once flat he decided that oil paint would bleed into them..

and leave a nice yellow linseed oil stain around the marks..

he just painted some figures..

in his 'survivors' style..

that he had been using for a short while..

the figures were on wheels..

after Giacometti..

and with a somewhat De Stijl look..

the paint was thinned down some and has run..

he has called this work..

NATIVE AMERICANS

and there are more like these..

INDIANS I NATIVES I AMERICANS I ORIGINAL I PEOPLE

these labels are discussed in the book..

NEITHER WOLF NOR DOG

as are many other interesting revelations about..

these people..

Dan an old Indian man..

makes a series of talks..

that are enlightening and pertinent..

he is able to view the world through both his eyes..

his Indian eye and his white eye..

maybe check this out for yourselves..

and get a coffee too..

SURVIVORS

 

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 13

our artist is 19 years old..

he is finally at art school..

just..

he is on the foundation course..

and will have to be accepted on a Dip AD course..

in order to progress to degree equivalent qualification..

that was what there was..

then in 1971..

BRUCE DAVIDSON

becomes a part of his plan..

but not before..

ELLSWORTH KELLY

who has shown him this figure..

he likes this figure or shape as he calls it then..

he plays around with it..

a lot..

he will play with this for some while..

and he will bring Bruce Davidson along too..

he has found screen printing..

and he likes it..

he starts with this Bruce photograph..

from East 100th St..

in Harlem NY..

photographs of our boy's first screen prints

he loves this picture..

it has all the fresh bright future in it..

OK some jerk has spilled filler over his silk screen..

and it could have been..

all she wrote..

but our boy just shrugs and soldiers on..

maybe he is just lazy..

and can't be bothered to make a new screen..

maybe he is short of time..

but really he just likes the white out shape..

with the bits missing..

he prints both on sides of the paper..

then cuts out the 'flap' shapes on all but one side..

then he folds them back..

with another print underneath..

and anyways..

when he is experimenting with printing colour over black halftone..

he discovers what a moire pattern is..

again he likes it..

in fact he loves all of this stuff..

this is why he has studied for years..

Art School..

Heaven..

AFTRE BATHING AT BAXTERS

he has made a choice..

and chose being with his girlfriend..

on a Graphic Design course..

is the way to go..

OH DEAR

he has no idea what Graphic Design is..

and will struggle to make his Fine Art ways..

fit in and take off..

it's like Joe's Garage..

he has to make imaginary paintings in his head..

so..

eventually he will revert to Ellsworth and Bruce..

and create a book..

on his own dime..

SYMPHONY A RIFF NUMBER

where each page is a variation on a theme..

using his two favourite items..

sometime later..

The Scream..

up next on..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Iconoclasm..

a 'flaps' extravaganza..

BRAESIDE ; FULL DISPLAY

the display cabinet and all it's secrets.. 

At Braedside all is quiet..

no cell-phones in 1959..

no traffic on the quiet road..

360 degrees of garden outside..

why not follow the links below each picture..

Cockatoo plane

pilot bird pilot..

Virginia Stuart Sea Pieces

an early art college cup and saucer..

sea pieces in paper-mache

just another great terrier and some ceramic shoes..

cockatoo plane and prop..

you can just make out uBABE..

faintly and on the right..

Snowy and Toto the border terrier..

stand guard..

maybe a little 'at ease'..

but that's the way things are..

down here in..

BRAESIDE

next time..

those promised garden shots..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 12 : 'BRAESIDE' 2

TALES FROM THE BENCH

Victor Horsley..

who lived here before us..

made this work bench..

dig the home made vibe..

innit!

VIRGINIA'S WORLD

this is ginny's bench now..

you can see how she rolls..

not the fish..

that's from a gallery in Aldeburgh..

cool huh..

no birds..

just her stuff..

got to be the bathroom..

and a parting shot of the bench's home..

https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/virginia-stuart

charles-stuart.pixels.com

figuiresinasouk.com

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 11 : 'BRAESIDE'

 BRAESIDE : A HOUSE FROM 1959

Braeside is a house from 1959..

this fireplace is a favourite original feature..

along with the oak floor and skirting boards..

here you can see work by artists and makers..

the papier-mache pieces are all by Virginia..

boats from Walberswick..

what  no vinyl..

in the entrance hall..

a couple of early Virginia's..

next time on..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

a bench made by the previous owner..

adventures in terracotta..

and maybe..

some garden shots..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 10

 in the artist's bedroom..

on a chair in the corner..

where he throws his clothes..

a t-shirt catches the evening light..

it is the light of Steve Ditko..

an early influence..

it is the Ditko reference that has triggered the photo..

 hence this post..

this is uBABE ..

one of the artist's creations..

regular bots will know that..

the artist has never outgrown his early influences..

and so the BABE has come to be..

her super power is her femininity..

she is a woman..

and as she is a character..

in the imagination of the artist..

she may have no need of a womb..

for this episode anyway..

but later..

who knows ?

without a womb there may never be another issue..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 9

 IN PETEY LAWLOR'S WITH OBLONG WALSH

this is Billy Stuart

tonight we are in Petey Lawlor's bar..

in Carrick-on Suir..

County Tipp..

Petey is as always..

a great host..

it's 1970..

Billy Stuart is here with some old school friends including..

Oblong Walsh and Paddy Clancy(bar stool, at bar, in corner)..

Billy Stuart is singing 'Slievenamon'..

all join in the chorus..

not a dry eye in the house..

Neil is sitting with Maurice O' Dwyer..

a poet..

we are mostly all on Guiness..

The Artist..

is so proud of his heritage..

to have all this..

and no one is on the phone..

everybody is fully engaged..

it's a shared emotional event..

there will be no photos..

and for some no memory..

it is just a great moment in the life of the artist..

just 18 years old..

he has been coming to Carrick for holidays for his whole of his young life..

his brother Paul and he are treated like the Beatles..

(uncle) Paulie's is the local sweat shop on William st.

he sells sweats, fags, ice cream, bread, spuds..

sitting around outside the shop on sacks of potatoes..

Paulie winds up the local girls..

they flock to see the artist's older brother..

but the artist thinks it is all about him..

previously..

IN PAULIE'S WITH MIKEY DWYER

sitting on sacks of spuds..

eating ice cream with spoons from plastic bowls..

with lots of raspberry syrup..

Mikey Dwyer comes in to buy..

"three Sweet Alton and a settled loaf please Paulie"..

JERUSALEM TOMORROW

soon the artist in residence..

will travel to the north..

and stay with acid heads..

on a farm in Ballycastle, County Antrim..

THEARTIST IN RESIDENCE 8

 IN THE FOUR SEASONS CAFE WITH ARKLE AND ARKLE'S JOCKEY

Lew, Jay Gatsby, Andy, Flash, Nog and Miffy,.

it is 1968 still..

all the gang are seated on either side of one of the long red banquettes,

Painty has his sketch pad and colour sticks..

he likes to carry these around..

just in case..

he has found a cigarette lighter..

in the street..

a nice Ronson gas Varaflame Comet..

he can press this and light peoples cigarettes..

yes people could smoke in cafes than..

he does not smoke himself..

he just has the lighter..

cool huh?

as an ice breaker..

it works a treat and soon he has many friends and..

an Identity..

he's the lighter guy..

you know the arty dude..

always carries a sketch pad..

PROPS DEPARTMENT

everyone needs a prop..

or a crutch as Dali says..

soon all will get noticed..

Andy says 15 minutes..

more like..

a New York minute..

anyway off with the trousers..

and on with the dress..

MEANWHILE BACK IN 1968

Mark Rothko has not denied this four seasons his murals..

he is still alive and smoking in his studio..

 in New York..

he stares at his great works and wishes..

the artist in residence..

could be there with him..

to light up his cigarettes..

no more dead matchsticks filling the ashtray..

littering the floor..

MEANWHILE

back at the local four..

Lew has brought along a poetry book..

with Lawrence Ferlinghetti..

and sometime during eternity..

some guys show up..

YOU NEVER KNOW YOUR LUCK

anything can happen..

anyone may come..

and hang out here..

guys come in from the local prison..

just out and needing caffein..

everyone is equal..

all are welcome..

careful who you go home with..

LATER DOWN AT THE BRIT

the club scene is really good here in palookaville..

you can see the Ronettes..

Clyde Mc Phatter..

Taste..

some guy is giving the evil eye..

at painty and Flash..

he wants to beat them up..

he is about to throw a punch when he sees Graham..

go over and have a laugh with them..

The big lug gives them both a smile later..

"I didn't know you were friends of Grahams"..

all is good and..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

is still in one piece..

he will live to draw again..

so we beat on..

boats against the current..

P.S.

Arkle was the nick name of a girl..

a face about town..

 Jocky was her friend..

 always in tow..

in palookaville..

everything's a scream.. 

innit..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 7

 IN THE KARDOMAH WITH FLASH AND LIZ

it's 1968 and after school..

a young artist has made new friends..

since being taken up by Flash..

Liz and Julie and their crowd..

are putting the world to rights in the Kardomah cafe..

another up market joint..

Petey paint is happy here with these popular people..

he will hanker after these moments all of his life..

girls are noticing him..

and they like what they see..

this gang are all with him at the Saturday night parties...

that best of the year 11 experience..

he has a trendy haircut..

short but perfectly formed..

and new clothes..

some parallel trousers that..

Docile and Bruin helped him buy..

BTW

Docile was actually a rocker I believe..

he was a tough guy..

 meanwhile..

 back at the Kardomah..

Liz is radiant and painty is attracted to her..

a lot..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 6

 IN THE CONA BAR WITH DOCILE AND BRUIN

It is 1967 or 8..

our boy is coming of age..

he is 'in town' in Griffin and Spalding a department store..

he is with friends from school..

nick names only..

Docile is Stones but Bruin is Beatles..

they are 'Mods'..

of a kind..

not the Parker and scooter and soul kind..

these guys have

back combed hair and flares..

they also listen to..

Incredible String Band, Spook tooth, Ten Years After..

They are townies where our boy is strictly Burbs..

he is doing 'O' level Art at school..

this is probably an after school thing..

before going home..

on a bus..

NO KEDS YET

our boy is only 15..

these guys are 16..

as is nearly every one in his school year..

Docile and Bruin read 'Oz'

and like underground stuff..

they are aesthetes of a sort..

and so we are in The Cona Bar..

not

THE FOUR SEASONS

where all the proper mods and townies sit..

where a cup of coffee is 8 old pennies..

around 60 cups for £1..

3 cups for two shillings..

that's ten pence in New Money..

about 24 cups of Joe for a $1..

at that time..

here in the Cona Bar..

all are drinking Russian Tea..

tea with no milk in a glass with a slice of lemon..

they are Uptown Top Ranking..

THE PHONE NEVER RINGS BUT IT POURS

nobody needs to wear noise cancelling headphones..

as there are no mobile (cell) phones..

no laptops, no idiot videos for juniors..

who cannot sit at table properly..

here in The Cona Bar..

silence or just a gentle hum of real conversations..

our boy is just a junior partner in this meet..

is is hopelessly out cooled by these guys..

yet he is here..

just as one day he will be an artist..

he is expecting to fly..

and is still but a fledgeling..

but he is both..

Four Seasoned and Cona Barred..

and will struggle to take off..

not an early pick for the team..

he would only have become arrogant..

anyway.. probably..

there are many stories in the tale of..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

will he succeed?

or snatch defeat from the jaws of victory/

can the boy from the Burbs..

be the golden boy..

or has the boy with the glasses..

blond mop and gold lame jacket..

left only muddy waters..

and the blues?

WATCH THIS SPACE

the sugar paper of the Art Class..

will become..

the large canvas of..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

see it all unfold..

in precious technicolor..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 5

The Great Wen

Imagine an office boy.. the office junior..

Imprisoned from 8.30 until 17.00 five days a week..

He is going nuts writing poems and imagining great paintings he will make..

He goes out at 10.00 every day to fetch the sandwiches and pastries for the morning break. 

He dawdles in the square to waste time away from that place.

Then a friend who has stayed on at school to do 'A' level Art and other subjects has news. His Art Teacher has arranged a trip to London for the students to visit The Tate Gallery and see the Magritte Exhibition. 

He has asked the Teacher if Peter can come with them and the answer is Yes. 

It's February 1969 and our boy from the library is in for an Experience.

He gas seen the Magritte's

He is standing in front of 'WHAM'

He is standing in front of Dali.

He is now standing looking at the most exiting painting he has ever seen or imagined. 

Interior II by Richard Hamilton

 is a combination of images both painted and applied and in a variety of media. 

It is, to our boy, stunningly beautiful.

out of all the amazing art he has seen this day it is this picture that will create..

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

He wants to make Art like this.

powerful and beautiful..

memorable..

inspiring..

He must get qualified academically and must come to study in London. 

He must find a mentor. 

Go to the best Art Schools. 

Drink with the artists. 

He must become himself

THE ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 4

 A young fella.. 18 just.. 

He is sitting on a park bench in Bangor, County Down.

It is dawn and the sun is rising on the rest of his life.

A rabbit sits nearby as they often will in the early hours.

It seems like the Garden of Eden.

or is it the Garden of Gethsemani?

He has been staying with friends ten years older than himself.

They are Hippy-ish veterans of early LSD and jaunts in Canada and Mexico.

He is really only here because his girl friend has gone home to parents in Jamaica for the summer holiday.

We view him from behind his back so that we can see the vista..

You might think of Casper David Friedrich.. 

"the celebrated German Romantic painter who is best known for Der Wanderer über dem Nebelmeer, or The Wanderer above the Sea of Fog. Painted in 1818, it is an image that evokes the full repertoire of themes we associate with European Romanticism: loneliness, sublimity, and the transformative encounter with spiritualised nature. It shows an unknown man whose back is to the viewer – a Rückenfigur, or figure from behind – a posture that draws us into the landscape that is spread out before him. Poised upon a rocky precipice, the Wanderer gazes down into a chaotic landscape of tempestuous clouds – a sea of fog that is pierced by jagged rocks."

Our guy today is dressed in his Civil Defence greatcoat that he got fro the army surplus store. He has long hair and flared trousers because this is 1970.

He looks out on a fractured dawn skyline as if the world is coming apart at the seams. The painting is on a tarpaulin which is stretched across another canvas painted with the universe or the stars at night. The tarpaulin is coming apart and is held together only by string. The seam where the tarpaulin is stitched together dissects the cavas diagonally. Reinforcing the idea of stress. The young fella has had an interesting night and all his certainties have gone awry.

Whilst the events depicted happened overlooking Belfast loch we see instead a fractured 

Mountains of Mourne.

The Artist In Residence is coming of age.

His world has fallen apart and must be remade..

The painting is called 

'All You Need is love'

because love is all you need..

isn't it?

and because he and his friends sang that song from the trailer pulled along behind a tractor whilst on an adventure to collect and bring back turf for the fire at the farm near Ballycastle.